Framlingham-raised superstar Ed Sheeran awarded Gold BRIT Billion Award by the British Phonographic Industry

History has been made as Suffolk superstar Ed Sheeran was handed an award marking a major milestone.

The Framlingham-raised singer was given a special-edition Gold BRIT Billion Award by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) for being the first artist to surpass 10 billion streams in the UK – one billion of which were in the past 12 months alone.

He was presented the award by Rizzle Kicks member Jordan Stephens.

Ed, who has had six number one UK albums, said: "It’s wonderful to receive the first-ever BRIT Billion Award in the UK for 10 billion streams.

“I want to say a big thank you to my fans. None of this is possible without you guys.”

Earlier this year, Ed was named the UK’s most-played artist for the sixth time in eight years.

The BRIT Billion Award launched in May this year.

The first wave of 13 artists to receive the honour included ABBA, Coldplay, Mariah Carey, Whitney Houston, Anne-Marie, Ellie Goulding, George Ezra and Lewis Capaldi.

Other recent recipients included Billie Eilish, Lana Del Rey, Olivia Rodrigo, Queen, Wizkid, Becky Hill, and James Arthur.

The BPI said more than 2,000 artists now get at least 10 million audio streams of their music in Britain per year, while almost 10,000 garner more than one million.

Jo Twist, the chief executive of the BPI, congratulated Ed on his win.

She said: “Ed may represent the pinnacle of streaming success, but he is also among the thousands of artists who are being streamed in the tens and hundreds of millions in the UK each year and who are thriving thanks to streaming and label support.

“We look forward to honouring many more artists, including future talent, with a BRIT Billion award.”